


Girlfriend material

by snekwami



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: F/F, Fluff, i don't know a single thing about textiles whoops, i just suddenly felt like writing alyanette
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-18
Updated: 2017-09-18
Packaged: 2018-12-31 08:01:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,451
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12128061
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/snekwami/pseuds/snekwami
Summary: Alya loves Marinette, but how is she supposed to tell her?





	Girlfriend material

**Author's Note:**

> I just suddenly got the urge to write Alyanette so I kinda wrote this on a whim *shrug*

Alya scrunched up yet another piece of paper. Why couldn’t she just write a stupid love poem? It had been so easy for Marinette to do it back on Valentine’s Day! So why was it so difficult for Alya now? She lay her head down on the desk and sighed. Writing for the Ladyblog was easy. Writing for herself? Not so easy.

The emotions were right there in her heart, in her head, waiting to be put down on paper. If only she could find a way to put it into words!

_Oh Marinette, if you only had any idea how much I care about you…_

Pff, that was ridiculous. Of course Marinette knew Alya cared about her. They were best friends, after all, they always made sure to be there for each other. No – Alya needed to find some other way to get across her feelings.

She had thought writing would be easier than saying it in person. This way she could sort out her feelings first and give it to Marinette to read at her leisure. But where to even start? Maybe it would be a better idea to just call up Marinette and tell her from the heart. It would be more personal.

_Oh hey Marinette, I think you’re really cute and amazing, and I know you got over Adrien ages ago, so uh… you wanna be my girlfriend or something?_

Would that be too casual? Would it sound like she wasn’t taking it seriously? Alya tugged at her hair in frustration. This was so hard!

She was good at so many things. She didn’t back away from akuma fights, from standing up to Chloé, from _anything_. Something as simple as confessing a crush to her friend should be easy in comparison. And anyway, this was just Marinette. Even if she didn’t feel the same way in return, she wouldn’t be weirded out or anything, and they could still be friends. Marinette was too much of a sweetheart to put any blame on Alya. It would just be good for Alya to get this off her chest, if nothing else. Every possible outcome was positive.

So then why was she still so nervous?

Oh whatever. She needed to get _something_ down on this piece of paper. Right – what sort of positive traits of Marinette’s did Alya admire? That might be a good place to start.

Positive traits… positive traits… there were just so many! Marinette was a genuinely kind person. She did her best to stand up for doing the right thing, and not let anyone else push her down. That was something Alya admired a lot indeed. It reminded her of the superheroes she loved reading about in comics, and even the real superheroes that roamed the Parisian streets. Marinette may only be a civilian, but she was a hero in her own way. There was something incredibly inspiring about her.

And Marinette was adorable. She had the sweetest smile, the sweetest voice, the sweetest everything! Her cute bouncy pigtails, entrancing blue eyes, those precious pink lips that Alya had thought about kissing more than once–

She groaned, dragging her fingernails across the table surface. Daydreaming about Marinette was not getting her anywhere. She needed to _do_ something. She always needed to. Everyone always knew Alya Césaire to be the girl who was constantly on the go, forever looking out for a new scoop. Being stuck in a rut like this was just making her miserable.

The sounds of her little sisters giggling reached her ears. They were probably getting up to mischief of some sort, and Alya was rather tempted to go join them. Ella and Etta always managed to make her feel better no matter what the problem was.

The twins themselves ran into the room carrying rolls of multicoloured fabrics and scissors, laughing loudly.

“Hi Alya, whatcha up to?” Ella asked, running over and trying to peek at the piece of paper. Thank goodness it was blank. Alya did not feel like telling her rather immature little sisters about her crush on Marinette.

“Nothing much,” she said, putting her pen down. “And what are you two up to?”

“We’re doing arts and crafts!” Etta said.

“We’re gonna make a pretty blanket!” Ella added.

“That sounds like fun,” Alya said, knowing how much Marinette would love something like that. Marinette loved arts and crafts. She was always making things, whether they were dresses, or pigeon hats, or banners, or…

Wait a second. Of course! Marinette loved arts and crafts!

“Can I borrow some of this fabric?” Alya asked, an idea forming in her head.

“Of course you can, we’ve got loads. There’s three whole rolls in the other room.”

“Thanks, that’s perfect!”

Alya leapt up and ran into the next room to get the fabric. Hopefully this idea would work better than writing a love letter. This idea felt much more… _Marinette_.

 

 

* * *

 

 

The next day, Alya visited Marinette at the bakery. She had been here so many times that it was starting to feel like a second home to her. Everything about Marinette just made her feel comfortable somehow.

“Marinette, Alya’s here to see you!” Sabine called, opening the trapdoor to Marinette’s room. “You’re not busy, are you?”

“No, of course not! Come in!”

Oh, the sound of Marinette’s voice! It was always so welcoming and supportive – or at least, it was when she was speaking to Alya. There was always a little hint of excitement in it, a reminder of Marinette’s boundless optimism and energy.

Alya ascended the ladder into the room and shut the door behind her. Marinette was just putting away what looked like last minute homework – how was that girl always so behind on her work, seriously? She turned and smiled at Alya, so warmly, as usual.

“Alyaaaaaa! What’s up?”

Well, a lot was up. Alya’s long-term crush on her best friend was getting so strong it was hard to ignore now, and she felt like she just had to do something about it, even though she felt nervous. That was what was up. But saying all that would be a very weird way of putting it.

Alya cleared her throat and showed Marinette the wrapped package she had been holding behind her back. “I made a present for you.”

“Oh, Alya! A present? That’s so sweet!”

Marinette ran forwards and hugged Alya tightly, like she did so often, and Alya could feel her heart beating so much faster in her chest, just like it always did when Marinette was close to her.

“But why?” Marinette asked, pulling away and taking the package. “It’s not my birthday… wait, is it?! Noooo, of course not, I’d remember if it was… Is it a national friendship day or something? Is it Valentine’s Day? Is it–”

“Don’t worry, Mari!” Alya laughed. “It’s no special occasion. I just did it because… well… to show you I care, I guess. Why don’t you open it?”

Ugh, she’d already ruined it. She had been planning to tell Marinette at this point that this was an “I love you” present, a symbol of how much Alya cared about her. But she hadn’t said that. Now how would she have the courage to? The ideal moment had passed!

While Alya was internally screaming, Marinette unwrapped the gift. She held up the folds of the fabric within to reveal a…

“A jacket!” Marinette screeched. “Alya, you made me a jacket! Oh my gosh, this is wonderful! Thank you so much!”

It really wasn’t that wonderful. Alya was nowhere near as good at making clothes as Marinette was, and her sisters’ fabric had a rather loud pattern on it that Alya was not sure would suit Marinette. But Marinette was now already trying the jacket on, and it didn’t look so bad after all. In fact, on someone like Marinette, it looked amazing!

But maybe that was just because Marinette herself looked amazing anyway…

“It’s a perfect fit!” she said, running over to look at herself in the mirror. “Alya, did you make this awesome jacket all by yourself?”

“I had a little help from Ella and Etta,” Alya admitted. “And the internet.”

“Well this is just fantastic! Oh, _Alya!_ You’re such an amazing friend! Come here!”

Marinette swamped Alya in another hug.

Such an amazing friend…

Of course. Alya hadn’t made her true feelings clear yet. She had been trying to, but she hadn’t managed it. It was time to pull out all the stops.

“You look amazing in jackets cut like that,” she said, hoping she didn’t sound too nervous. Usually it was easy for her to hide her nerves from her voice, but she was used to letting her emotions flow naturally when around Marinette.

“Aww, thanks! You would too, I'm sure – you look amazing in everything.”

Was Alya blushing? Maybe she was. Marinette never held back on the compliments but it still felt pretty good to hear.

“In fact,” Marinette said, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear and taking a deep breath, “since you gave me this present, I should give you one in return.”

“What? No, you don’t have to–”

“But I want to!” Marinette rummaged around in her drawers for something, then pulled out the jacket that she always wore to school every day. “Here. I want you to have this.”

“But… Marinette…” Alya helplessly accepted the jacket being thrust into her hands. “You’ve had this jacket for years…”

“So I need to pass it on to someone worthy of it! Right? And… well… who’s m-more awesome than you?”

Wait… had Marinette just stuttered a little?

Alya looked up from the jacket in her hands to see that Marinette was looking in another direction, her cheeks ever so slightly red.

Well. Alya knew that look very well. And she knew that stutter very well, too. She had heard it countless times when Marinette was trying to talk to Adrien. It didn’t really happen anymore, since Marinette had moved on from him and treated him like all her other friends, but…

If Marinette was blushing and stuttering now, surely that could only mean one thing. Alya tried not to get her hopes up too much, but the thought was already giving her courage. So much courage. She tried Marinette’s jacket on, her nervousness slipping away.

“Marinette, how do I look?”

Marinette turned to have a look, and her eyes seemed fixated on the jacket for several seconds longer than they should have been. A huge grin broke onto her face.

“Alya, you look so cute! That jacket suits you so much!”

Alya grinned back. “Thanks, Marinette. Are we jacket buddies now?”

“Yeah, we totally are!”

Alya could detect the scent of something coming from the jacket, something very vague but very familiar. The scent of Marinette’s perfume. Usually Alya caught whiffs of it in hugs, and now it was on the very jacket she was wearing. Part of her never wanted to wash the jacket, just so she could leave it smelling that way forever.

Was she blushing again? She was sure she must be now. At least she wasn’t the only one.

“Say, Alya…” Marinette was running her fingers over the pattern on the fabric of the jacket that Alya had made for her. “This is really comfy. What material did you use to make this?”

Alya had no idea. She’d just taken it straight from the rolls that Ella and Etta were using, and she didn’t know enough about textiles to figure it out. Something soft, and smooth, and pretty… just like Marinette…

“Girlfriend material,” she said without thinking.

What? Why did she say that?!

Girlfriend material… yikes. That was so lame! That was so cheesy! That was so _obvious_. Yes, she had wanted to be obvious, but not that obvious! How was she ever going to be able to look Marinette in the eye again?! She half turned away, wondering if it was time to leave yet. This had rapidly turned into a complete disaster.

At least, she thought it had – until Marinette started giggling.

She looked up at the sound to see that Marinette was blushing a lot more now, her face practically glowing. Oh, why did Marinette look so beautiful when she laughed? It made Alya’s head spin.

“Oh, Alya…” Marinette managed to get her laughter under control. “Are you f-flirting with me?”

Wait. This was working? This was actually working?!

Well, in that case, why not carry on?

“I might be,” Alya replied, with a wink. For a second afterwards she regretted it, knowing that had been even cheesier, but the look on Marinette’s face reassured her. This really was working.

“Alya! That’s so c-cute! And um… yeah. I… that’s… well, I guess…”

There was that flustered, stuttering Marinette that Alya had seen plenty of times. But something seemed different this time. Marinette didn’t seem uncomfortable or afraid. She just seemed…

Well, lovestruck?

No wonder she could barely get out a sentence all of a sudden.

Alya stepped forwards and held her hands, feeling a rush of adrenaline as she did so. “Marinette, the truth is, I’ve really liked you for a while. And um, I had no idea how to tell you. So I made you this gift to show my appreciation for you. The whole time I’ve known you, you’ve just been so awesome, the best friend ever, and so supportive and–”

Marinette suddenly hugged her yet again, even tighter than before. That scent of perfume was so much stronger now. And Marinette’s shampoo, too, Alya could catch the scent of that from all the beautiful dark hair that was now in her face…

“Same, Alya, same! Y-you’re the best! And I love you too! I have for ages!”

“Really?” Alya asked, giggling slightly and running a few fingers through Marinette’s hair before she could stop herself. She had always wanted to do that.

“Yes! Why else do you think I stopped obsessing over Adrien? I fell in love with you…”

“You hid it pretty well, then…”

Marinette pulled back enough to look Alya right in the eyes. “It’s too easy to be comfortable around you. You’re my best friend. And… well…” She leaned forwards until their foreheads were touching. “Girlfriend?”

Alya could hardly breathe. Marinette had always been rather touchy-feely with her, but they had never been this close. It was so new, so… so… _bewitching_.

The adrenaline coursing through her gave her enough courage to kiss Marinette’s precious little nose, making her gasp slightly in surprise. “Yes. Girlfriend.”

Marinette slid her arm around Alya’s waist and pulled her even closer. “Jacket girlfriends?”

“Yeah, jacket girlfriends,” Alya whispered, before pressing her lips onto Marinette’s.


End file.
